Mystifying season rolls on in Rockies’ shadows

BOULDER, Colo. — Texas A&M is three games from wrapping up its most mystifying regular season in recent memory.

In light of the Aggies’ one-point loss at Colorado on Saturday, when they blew a 10-point fourth-quarter lead, the question is: where to from here?

Fans had crossed their fingers that the Aggies (5-4, 2-3) had turned a corner under Mike Sherman when they won by 22 points at Texas Tech two weeks ago.

But on Saturday in the shadow of the Rockies, the same ol’ problems reared their heads — highlighted by two hugely inopportune turnovers late — many arguably the result of the Aggies fielding one of the greenest teams in college.

But considering the amount of experience the youngsters had gotten in the first two-thirds of the season, the youth excuse doesn’t really fly much anymore — and to their credit they’re not using it, either.

The Aggies rolled into Boulder on a two-game winning streak and brimming with confidence, but got rolled late by one of the worst teams in the league that had lost by 19 on its home field a week earlier to another mediocre Big 12 team (Missouri).

Apparently that’s life in the Big 12 this season, and the Aggies still need one victory to become eligible for a bowl for the first time under Sherman. They’ll probably get that on Nov. 21 at Kyle Field against Baylor, although the Bears won at Missouri on Saturday 40-32.

A&M plays at a mad Oklahoma — 10-3 losers at Nebraska on Saturday — this coming weekend, and after the Baylor game wraps up the regular season at Kyle on Thanksgiving night against No. 2 Texas.

The Aggies desperately need to make a bowl game — against Navy in the Texas Bowl in Houston? — to show they’ve truly made strides in Sherman’s two seasons in College Station.

Sometimes it’s readily apparent they have (see the two previous weeks), sometimes they look like some of the worst teams that Dennis Franchione trotted out over five seasons this decade (see fourth quarter on Saturday).

Which team will show up against the Sooners? At this point the guy on the third deck’s guess is as good as any alleged expert. And a lot of times it’s better.